Pigeon English Essay Questions

How do Harri and his friends process violence through creative play?

Violence, weapons, and simulated death permeate the games Harri and his friends play. Harri enjoys playing "suicide bomber," a game where he runs into a friend without warning. Harri and his friends draw "scars" on their bodies and pretend they received their wounds fighting fictional creatures, like the Terminator and vampires. Through this type of play, Harri and his friends can imagine that they are tough enough to stand up to gangs like the Dell Farm Crew.

Harri plays games by himself, pretending he is part of a war or a gang, imagining what it would be like to hurt someone or be killed. Through his imagination, Harri reimagines death and violence as something dramatic, exciting, and imaginary rather than traumatic, scary, and real.

What purpose does the pigeon narrative serve in the text?

The pigeon's narrative initially comments on human nature, philosophizing, criticizing, and pitying human struggles. However, as the text continues, the pigeon takes an active role in Harri's life, stepping in to protect him from the Dell Farm Crew and even speaking to Harri directly. The pigeon takes on a guardian-angel role and arrives at the end of Harri's life to "show [Harri] the way" to the afterlife. Though the pigeon does not reply when Harri asks, "do you work for God?" it is clear that the pigeon represents a higher power, at least for Harri. The pigeon's existence and agency give the reader hope that Harri and other children whose lives are cut short find comfort and rest.

Explain the double meaning of "Pigeon English."

Pidgin English is a linguistic term that describes a form of communication used by people who do not speak the same language. A pidgin language incorporates elements of different languages, simplifying or changing grammar and vocabulary to convert meaning. The phrase "Pigeon English" is a play on "Pidgin English," which describes the language non-native English speakers develop. Since "pidgin" and "pigeon" are homophones, and Harri has a close relationship with a pigeon, the title also symbolizes Harri's unique understanding of the world as an immigrant child. Since Harri is young and often misunderstands the world around him, it is conceivable that he would confuse the words "pigeon" and "pidgin."

When describing London, Harri says, "the devil’s too strong around here." Explain his meaning.

Throughout the text, Harri attempts to understand why things are more difficult for him in London than they were in Ghana. He recognizes that his family started behaving differently after immigrating and theorizes that "England makes people go crazy" because of the air pollution and urban chaos. Harri starts to feel strongly tempted to join gangs and bully other children, though he only misbehaved once in Ghana. He does not understand his own feelings of fear and shame and latches onto his mother's supernatural explanation that the "devil is strong" in some parts of the city. Another way to interpret what his mother says is that some parts of the city are more dangerous because social and economic pressures push people to commit crimes in order to survive. In Ghana, Harri's community was close-knit and friendly, and Harri wasn't exposed to violence.

How does Harri's fascination with death foreshadow his murder?

After seeing the dead boy's blood at the crime scene, Harri realizes that children, including him, are mortal and can be killed. Harri asks his mother about the babies who die in the maternity ward where she works, seeking reassurance that they "grow up in Heaven." Harri makes plans to give his classmates his books if he dies young and even plans his own funeral.